Thirteenth International Conference on The Arts in Society

Abstract

The paper presents an Aesthetic education project in Cali, Colombia, that stimulates expressive practices (drawing, dancing, drama, music and media) in schools in low-income communities. The Faculty of Arts at the local state university developed the interdisciplinary framework. After half a century of civil war and the 2017 peace agreement, a commitment to social justice involves us in the fair distribution of cultural goods, particularly learning opportunities and resources. We draw on Gregory Sholette´s ideas of the counter-public sphere (2011), and also on Argentine author Reinaldo Laddaga´s claim that 21st century arts must not be conceived as the realm of virtuous individuals who cultivate specialized talents, but rather as a field where artists and non-artists meet, cooperate and create. (Estética de la emergencia, 2006). The new generations are an imaginative and ethical force. They embody change in a society. Australian researchers Jane Kenway and Elizabeth Bullen have pointed out that new media cannot be regarded barely as “entertainment.” They represent current paths for family life, education, work, and citizen participation (2001). Through arts and media children are encouraged to discover their talents, and to enhance their emotional, intellectual and aesthetic abilities. We stimulate children´s capacities to understand their social context. Also to learn about their civil, cultural and media rights and how to exercise them.